Food truck ordinance savory to some, sour to others

Some truck operators object to fines, restrictions

restaurant group calls plan a 'good compromise'

James Nuccio left and Gabriel Wiesen are partners in their food truck, Beavers Donuts, which makes mini beignet-like donuts with different toppings. (Nancy Stone, Chicago Tribune)

As Mayor Rahm Emanuel's food truck ordinance heads toward a council vote this month, both sides — broadly represented by brick-and-mortar restaurateurs on one side and food truck entrepreneurs on the other — will make sure aldermen hear their views.

The current proposed ordinance would allow cooking on trucks; 24-hour operation but two hours maximum at any truck stand; and special parking areas in busy neighborhoods. But it would also impose a 200-foot buffer zone between trucks and restaurants in most cases, GPS tracking of each truck and fines of up to $2,000 for violations.

As the City Council's License and Consumer Protection Committee gets set to review the ordinance, which could be amended even before the committee's public hearing July 19, both sides are gearing up.

The Illinois Restaurant Association, which offered input for the newly crafted proposal, calls it "a good compromise that balances a variety interests." The mayor's office shared similar sentiments.

"Chicago's got a renowned food culture and can no longer stay behind other major cities across the country when it comes to food trucks," Emanuel's office said in a written statement about the proposed ordinance, which was co-sponsored by seven aldermen. "The administration is committed to helping this exciting, innovative industry grow."

But food truck organizer Amy Le , operator of Duck N Roll, doesn't see the industry growing under the proposal.

At the heart of her concerns is the provision that would restrict food trucks from operating within 200 feet of a restaurant entrance and impose $1,000 to $2,000 fines for doing so.

"Those kinds of fines would wipe out the entire day of sales," she said. "And so it's ironic that on the day the mayor introduced the (revised proposal), he also passed a law that would make fines for marijuana possession much lower than parking too close to a restaurant."

Le acknowledged that the operators are already working under a 200-foot buffer zone restriction (about one-third of a city block), but she noted that current fines are much lower, at $250 to $500. She said she encourages all truck operators to follow the rules, but she worries that the risk of higher fines will simply make truck operation prohibitively expensive.

While Le will push to shrink the fines and the 200-foot restriction, Beth Kregor, of the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship, which defends the rights of street vendors nationally, believes the fines should be abolished altogether.

"It's my opinion, and I think the opinion of the Illinois Supreme Court, that (buffer zones) are clearly in place to protect some businesses from other businesses," said Kregor, who directs the clinic in Chicago. "They play no role in health and safety regulation and therefore are unconstitutional."

The University of California at Los Angeles Law Clinic has mounted successful legal challenges to food truck buffer zones in Los Angeles County. The Institute for Justice, meanwhile, is challenging food truck laws in cities in Georgia, Texas and Florida.

"Now food trucks (in Los Angeles) are allowed to go anywhere they want as long as they do it safely, and both the food trucks and the restaurants in LA, are thriving," said Kregor, noting that if a buffer zone remains in the Chicago ordinance a legal challenge will likely follow.

The restaurant association said the 200-foot rule is aimed not at giving one type of business unfair advantage over another, but "at easing traffic congestion and ensuring access for emergency and police vehicles and garbage removal," according to association President Sam Toia.

In a news conference after the proposed ordinance was introduced, the mayor called the 200-foot rule "the right standard" and "the golden mean balance between the bricks and mortars and the trucks."

But not all restaurant owners like the new rules, and not all food truck advocates feel the ordinance is unfair.

Restaurant owner Glenn Keefer said he's disappointed that the mayor's plan allows food trucks to both park downtown and operate out of "food truck stands."

"They say that they have to create these food truck stands because there aren't any places to park that are 200 feet away from a restaurant," he said, "but then they allow them to come in and look for a spot 200 feet away from a restaurant anyway. Where's the logic in that?"

Keefer said he is not against legalizing food trucks. He even bought the domain name WeckWagon.com (named after one of his cafe's sandwiches) in case he decides to launch a truck himself.

The restaurateur, however, said he's concerned about where operators will use the bathroom, proper enforcement of rules and a lack of caps on the number of licenses and food truck stands.